(The Root) — Though he was making an early campaign swing through Charlotte, N.C., a city he'll revisit for the Democratic convention in September, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter's mind was also on the battle over a voter-ID law going on in his Pennsylvania home. "We are very concerned about disenfranchising hundreds of thousands of voters," he told The Root.

"Many of us can't figure out what this is really about, since we have no documentation of any in-person voter fraud having taken place in Pennsylvania in anyone's memory," Nutter said. "We filed an amicus brief, and there are other people fighting on those issues. I'm not a lawyer, so I'm not going to be in court."

Last Thursday, the day of closing arguments in the case challenging the law, Nutter said that his job, as long as the law is on the books, is to make sure that people have the needed ID "so that they won't have a problem and that they are not discouraged when it's time to actually get out and vote." In Philadelphia, he said, that includes printing up materials to put in city government buildings, recreation centers and libraries.

"I think it's risky to make any prediction when you're dealing with a case in court," Hair told The Root, but "the plaintiffs put on an incredibly strong case. I can't imagine a stronger case against photo ID than this one."

That case included analysis from Matt Barreto, a University of Washington political scientist who placed the number of eligible Pennsylvania voters without necessary ID at 1.3 million, far above the state's estimate; an admission that the state has no process in place that could provide photo IDs to close the number of voters who need them; and Pennsylvania Secretary of State Carol Aichele's answer to a question on the details of the law. "I don't know what the law says," Aichele said on the stand.